If It's Hip, It's Here (Archives)

Artist Zoe Bradley creates stunning headpieces, dresses, sets and installations crafted from various papers. That's right.... paper. And boxes, and sometimes even plastic spoons. But her 'forte' is her signature use of various "luxury" papers in a sculptural way.

She also does windows. And by that, I mean the windows of some of the most prestigious stores around; Harrods, Selfridges, Liberty, and Smythson in London, Missoni in Italy, Brown Thomas of Dublin and more.

A graduate of Middlesex University she went to work for Alexander McQueen where she honed her craft that later became her trademark.

Below are some of her spectacularly designed dresses and headpieces that have appeared in editorial work and advertising campaigns.

And her headpieces:

And her in store displays:

And of course, her head-turning window displays:

Some of her fashions have even been on the runway, as in these two from the Michiko Show:

There's a lot more of her impressive work to see. Be sure to check out her entire portfolio of work here.

I have been a big fan of Schleeh designs beautiful wood desk accessories and notepads for years. I have the "Magnetique DooDad Pad" and the "Bachelor Pad" in my home and have recommended them on several sites.

In addition to their unusual sculptural wood accessories, they are the makers of the Mighty Morph notepads you might have seen if you frequent hip stores, museum shops and the like. Now they have many more additions to the line that are equally fantastic and make great gifts for the holidays. And they are made with 100% recycled paper!!

New for this year are some unusual and fun additions, including one of a kind, hand painted pads, dog and bone pad, and laser engraved customizable pads. Each consists of 1000 sheets of paper. And every single one would make an awesome gift for anyone.

ZEBRA MIGHTY MORPH, sculptural notepad 3" by 5" by 5" high:

RULER MORPH pad 2" by 2.75" by 5" high:

The DOG & BONE MORPH, (a collaboration with Canadian graphic artist Jeremy Tracz). Perfect for the Dog Lover:

The OLD GLORY MIGHTY MORPH PAD. Perfect for the Patriotic.
3" by 5" by 5" High :

Custom Laser Engraved MORPH and MIGHTY MORPH Pads. They will laser your artwork for runs as few as 36 units. Each consists of 1000 sheets of paper:

Hand-printed, one-of-a-kind MIGHTY MORPHS. Some are mono-block prints, some are splattered-all of them are original works of art that you can then morph to indescribable levels of cool:

From their previous collection (and still available):

The original, a sculptural tower of blank paper that you can twist and turn into desktop art. A perfect example of 1,000 sheets of notepaper in functional form.

The original MORPH malleable paper pad sculpture 2" x 2.75 " x 5" high:

The PICASSO MORPH pad (PICASSO graphic image by Victoria Wonnacott and Schleeh Design) 2" x 2.75 " x 5" high:

STRIPED MORPH series, malleable paper pad sculpture 2" x 2.75 " x 5" high:

STRIPED MORPH black, malleable paper pad sculpture 2"x 2.75" x 5" high:

Not all of the pads are carried at stores, to find where you can purchase your favorite Mighty Morph pad, I suggest you 'Google' it.

Some of their beautiful wood desk accessories are shown below. Most are available in maple, cherry or walnut and paper refills are available for each design. They make wonderful gifts and the prices start at approximately $45.

Some of the above wood desk accessories and notepads can be found here or here at Greer Chicago. And here at the Marten Arts Gallery. And several more here at the Van Dop Gallery.

About Colin Schleeh:
Colin Schleeh was born in Montreal, Quebec in 1955. He began his design career working for his father, sculptor Hans Schleeh, polishing marble sculptures and cleaning the ever-growing piles of marble chips. Attracted to the organic qualities of wood, he began his studies in wood design at the age of 17, apprenticing at the Berufs und Fachschule, Holz und Kunstgewerbe in Stuttgart Germany, before moving to Edmonton where he also completed a Canadian apprenticeship as a furniture designer and builder at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. Opening his studio in 1980, Schleeh designed and built custom furniture, as well as having his own work featured in galleries and stores across western Canada.

Moving his family to Montreal in 1986, Schleeh worked as a boat-builder, set designer, custom furniture designer/builder, sculptor, jewelry designer, and completed a one year stint as manager of a custom furniture company (not all at the same time!), before accepting a position at Dawson College to head their Fine Arts studio. Schleeh taught for ten years, always maintaining his own studio. When it became apparent that the increasing demand for his work required his full attention, Colin Schleeh opened Schleeh Design with Rachael Schwartz in the fall of 2001.

Operating out of a 7,000 square foot studio on the banks of the Lachine Canal in Montreal, Quebec, Schleeh Design offers a line of innovative limited production accessories and serves as a showcase for Schleeh's collection of handmade vases and decorative art.

Recent work includes design commissions for Hermes of Paris, Bulgari and Shreve Crump and Low. Schleeh's work is represented in galleries and collections throughout Canada and the United States, as well as Japan and Europe.

To see their vessels, furniture and more, check out the Schleeh Design site here.